


Somewhere Before the Dawn

by waywardriot



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, Dreams, Gen, Yearning, aka you may put your soriku goggles on if you wish but it's not necessary at all, riku misses sora so much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:15:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29905113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waywardriot/pseuds/waywardriot
Summary: In Riku's dreams, Sora awaits.Many of his dreams are of cityscapes, of cold, of a person both familiar and unfamiliar, but sometimes they’re more simple. Other times, it’s Sora just on a normal day: laying on the beach, sitting on the paopu tree, standing ankle-deep in the water.Riku was told that his dreams are one of the keys to finding Sora, but they aren't always—sometimes they're just the normal days, what he needs and craves.
Relationships: Riku & Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	Somewhere Before the Dawn

**Author's Note:**

> this is sort of an experimental thing to figure out some sora and riku characterization! not quite sure about it but i tried

In Riku’s dreams, Sora awaits. 

Some dreams are prophetic, like the Fairy Godmother told him; some dreams contradict the others; and there are dreams that seem to mean nothing at all.

Many of his dreams are of cityscapes, of cold, of a person both familiar and unfamiliar, but sometimes they’re more simple. Other times, it’s Sora just on a normal day: laying on the beach, sitting on the paopu tree, standing ankle-deep in the water.

Riku can’t tell whether Sora is real in those dreams, somehow traversing their connection, or if he’s just a figment spawned from Riku’s own yearning—but he doesn’t care, because it has to be enough when there’s almost nothing else of his best friend to cling on to.

Tonight, when Riku opens his eyes, he’s standing on the small wooden dock of the play island as it nears sunset. It all feels so real, the ocean breeze, the sound of the waves, and, when he turns his head, the sight of Sora on the paopu tree, right where he belongs. It makes Riku’s heart ache to know that no matter how much his heart wills it, Sora is somewhere much further away than here.

Whether or not this Sora is real, Riku isn’t going to miss the opportunity to speak to him one more time, though. His strides are long, his steps purposeful, as he crosses the island until he reaches the smaller one with the tree. There, he leans back against the tree trunk next to Sora, the same as always.

“Hey, Riku!” Sora says, his smile all shining teeth. “You finally showed up.”

Riku can’t help but smile himself, though his is far more wan than Sora’s infectious one. “Sorry to keep you waiting. I haven’t been sleeping too much lately.”

“It’s all right. I’ve gotten used to waiting lately.”

Riku narrowly keeps himself from flinching, the weight of guilt for not yet finding Sora falling back onto his shoulders. Despite what his friends say, he still feels like he’s somehow failed Sora by not figuring out how to bring him back, like Sora did to him not that long ago. “I’m sorry,” he repeats.

“What? There’s nothing to apologize for,” Sora says, cocking his head. Then, he smiles again, more broadly, and pats the space next to him. “Come up here and sit with me.”

Riku holds back for just a second, still unsure if there’s a place for him on this tree instead of beside it, but Sora’s warmth beckons him up. He nods and hoists himself up onto the trunk until he’s sitting next to Sora, almost close enough for their arms to be touching.

A few moments of silence pass by, and then: “I miss you,” Riku tells Sora plainly, looking out towards the sunset—it feels too vulnerable to meet his gaze right now.

“I miss you too, Riku,” Sora replies, always earnest, always honest. 

Riku closes his eyes and thinks about what it’s like to have his best friend at his side again, even if for only a little. “Kairi misses you too,” he goes on. “We talk about you a lot.”

“Oh, so you’re not forgetting about me.” The grin on Sora’s face is so wide and goofy that Riku could almost believe this is real life.

Shaking his head, Riku laughs. “How could we forget about you?” he asks. “You’re too special to everyone for that.”

Sora playfully bumps Riku’s shoulder with his own, and then after a pause, he blurts out, “Tell me what you’ve been up to. And everyone else.” His tone is painfully wistful, and it again makes Riku wonder if this _is_ the real Sora, missing his home so acutely.

“Everyone’s been looking for you,” Riku starts. “Kairi’s going to sleep soon to look for you. Ventus, Terra, and Aqua are going to the Realm of Darkness to help search for clues. And they’re trying to trace Roxas and Xion’s memories to you.” He sighs and looks down at his lap. “We’re trying so hard, Sora. It’s all I can think about anymore.”

The pain on Sora’s face is so open—so out of place. Riku instantly wants to take back his words and wipe that hurt away, but before he can speak again, Sora has brushed it under the rug. “Aw, Riku,” he says, amicably elbowing him in the side. “It won’t be much longer if we’re all working together, right?”

Riku tries his best to smile reassuringly at Sora, but he can’t even convince himself. “Yeah. You’re right.” He looks back out to the ocean, constantly pulling and pushing, and clenches his hand into a fist where Sora can’t see it. “We’ll find you soon,” he says, both to reassure Sora and to reassure himself. “We’ll bring you home and then you’ll never hear the end of it.”

Sora’s laugh is strained in a way that maybe only Riku would notice. Swinging his feet, he also looks out to sea. “You and Kairi are really gonna put me through the wringer, huh?” he jokes.

“Kairi sure is.” Riku goes to speak about how she’s been feeling with Sora gone but falters when he remembers the pain on his face, not wanting to put yet another thing on his shoulders. “We’ll have a lot to talk about,” is all he decides to say—though he knows it might be a lot more crying and scolding than talking at first.

“Yeah…” Sora sighs, and another pause goes by, then: “Let’s race!” he says (or perhaps demands) as he suddenly leaps off the paopu tree, his feet landing lightly in the sand. “C’mon—it feels like it’s been forever!”

It has been, in a way—long gone are the days in which they played on the island all day, nothing on their minds except competition and a much simpler journey. Even just over a year later, Riku feels so far removed from that arrogant, moody fifteen-year-old that he once was.

One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is that competitive nature. Without hesitation, he hops off the tree right behind Sora and follows him to the invisible starting line. Sora stretches his arms out over his head, bounces up on his tiptoes, and gives Riku a sly look. “Ready to lose?”

Riku can only chuckle. “That’ll be the day, Sora,” he replies. “Go!”

Without another word, they both take off, far stronger and faster than they used to be during these races.

And, different from normal, Sora is right at Riku’s elbow when Riku glances over as they run. Somehow, Sora is keeping up with the strides of Riku’s long legs, and when Riku tries to run faster, Sora speeds up in tandem, never falling behind. He elbows Riku, looking far more excited than breathless, and Riku nearly trips over his feet.

They reach the dock at the exact same instant, as if they’re two boys in one body. Shaking his head, Riku turns to Sora. “Tie,” he admits. “For the first time.”

Sora raises his hands and cheers, enthusiastic enough that Riku could almost think Sora had actually won. “Told you I’d catch up one day!” he says, bouncing on the balls of his feet. “One more!”

Riku can’t deny any version of Sora one more race, and especially not when he needs to make up for that tie. Why would he start losing now, after all this time? “You haven’t changed at all,” he tells Sora—and then they’re off once again. 

Though they take off at the exact same instant, Sora somehow moves ahead of Riku, and Riku’s heart hurts unimaginably. To this Sora, this is just a race, but to Riku—it’s a symbol of how far Sora is out of his reach in the waking world, slipping further away with each second that passes. 

Still, this dream Sora is giddy like nothing is wrong with the world, ignorant of Riku’s turmoil. All Riku can do is speed up to try to catch up—but it’s impossible. Before he knows it, Sora is at the other end of the island, standing there triumphantly with his hands on his hips. 

“Beat you, Riku!” he announces to the small, quiet island, like everyone in real life is listening to his words. “I told you I would!”

 _Don’t leave me behind,_ Riku wants to beg as he stands there and looks at Sora. _Not again._

But he doesn’t—saying that will put pain back on Sora’s face, and Riku wouldn’t be able to bear that whether or not this Sora is real. “That’s only one compared to what, hundreds?” he says instead, all he can muster of a smirk on his face. 

“Riku!” Sora stamps his foot in the sand, and Riku manages to laugh at his petulance. “At least I won!”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” Riku says, nudging his arm. “But don’t get used to it. As soon as you get back home, I’ll win again.”

Sora narrows his eyes and sticks his tongue out, characteristic enough that it makes Riku’s chest ache. “Big words, Riku. Just you wait!”

Riku’s smirk falters, and he stares back out towards the sun where it’s steadily slipping closer and closer to the ocean, ready to be swallowed—their time is almost up. 

“I’m waiting,” he echoes. “Then I’ll make things right.”

This Sora seems to know what Riku is saying without him actually saying it—perhaps because he’s a figment of Riku’s imagination, or… just because his best friend knows him that well. Either way, Sora nods and smiles, a little wistful, as he also turns back towards the sunset. 

The light is fading all too fast, just like Sora did. The rays of sun are slipping between Riku’s fingers, so he has to hold on to Sora for as long as he can. 

Sora slings an arm around Riku’s shoulders and Riku does the same, like they haven’t gone a single day without being pressed together. Against Riku, Sora is warm and solid, not frozen like flashes of Riku’s other dreams. Leaning into Sora, Riku breathes in the feeling of the person who matters most standing right at his side. 

As the waves gradually swallow the sun, Riku knows their time together is short. Sora is the daylight, welcoming him with open arms, and that means he must fade away with nightfall—but it’s not forever. Riku knows that eventually the sun will rise again, and these dreams will return to the reality they’re supposed to be. 

“I believe in you,” says Sora to Riku, the expanse of the water their only audience. “You believed in me when I needed it most. I’ll always believe in you.”

Riku’s free hand squeezes into a fist at his side, and he closes his eyes to filter out the last of the burning light. Sora believes in him—he always has, since the very beginning—so Riku can’t let him down. He _won’t._

“Thanks,” he says simply, lightly tapping his head against Sora’s. “I’ll be there soon.”

“I know.” Sora bumps his head back, and his skin starts to turn cold under Riku’s hand. “Miss you, Riku.”

“Miss you, Sora,” Riku echoes. 

He opens his eyes to stare at the last flash of sunlight before night takes over, and the presence at his sides fades away all the same. 

Riku blinks, and suddenly he’s back in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. The ache in his chest has only gotten harsher, knowing that his best friend isn’t anywhere he can reach right now—but that just means he has to try harder. Sora knows he can. 

Lifting his hand, Riku covers his heart and closes his eyes, trying to trace a connection that’s faded in a way different than ever before. 

It’s still there, though, even if lying dormant and silent. It’s always been there and it always will be—Riku doesn’t know how he ever doubted that. 

“Soon,” he speaks into the silence of the room. 

The silence responds nothing, and that’s all it needs to; Sora’s encouragement was enough, always held close to Riku’s heart, there when he needs it most.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/waywardriot)!


End file.
